Sometimes you don’t remember games because they came down to the last possession. Instead, you remember them more for what transpired in the coming years as it pertained to the teams involved.
The 2002 high school football matchup between the Napa Indians and Vallejo Apaches had that feel in a game that Napa won 28-14. The game was not even that close. I remember going into the game thinking that idea.
Setting the scene: This is the third oldest high school football rivalry in the state of California, which is significant considering the fact that there have been stretches of time that the two schools did not play each other.
Both teams were 2-1 entering the game but going in, one had the feeling that Napa had more momentum. The Indians lost 25-24 to Las Lomas in its season opener before rebounding with wins over Buhach Colony and Rodriguez, both 69-13 scores. Granted, both were first year varsity programs with no seniors but considering Napa’s struggles in recent years, such games were signs that the Indians were ready for big things.
Vallejo started the season with wins over Atwater (21-14) and Sacramento (47-13) but lost 30-20 at Vacaville the following week.
Napa entered the 2002 season in a four-year slump, going 12-24-4 over the course of 1998-2001. The Indians went 3-7 in 2001 but finished 3-2 after an 0-5 start. From 1986-2001, Fairfield, Vacaville and Vallejo were the most consistently strong teams in the Monticello Empire League.
Vallejo went 10-2 in 2001, winning a share of the MEL title with Fairfield. Before the 2002 season, however, the Apaches’ football program was dealt two severe blows. The first of which was quarterback DeMarcus Nelson opting to forgo his junior season of football after having signed a full-ride basketball scholarship to Duke University. The second blow came when wide receiver/defensive back Warner West was expelled from the school for disciplinary reasons. Nonetheless, as consistent as Vallejo had been, the program had the “next man up” mentality.
The Apaches had the recent advantage over Napa, including a more-decisive-than-it-appeared 49-23 win at Memorial Stadium in 2001. Though the regular season would have six more games after this one, Napa could go a long way toward returning to relevance with a win over Vallejo.
Thumbnail sketch of the game: The Napa running back tandem of Buddy Connor and Iori Osawa combined for 102 yards rushing and the Indians forced four Vallejo turnovers in handing the Apaches a loss. The Indians jumped to a 28-0 halftime lead and it was curtains for Vallejo.
Napa opened the scoring early in the game after Ademir Cacique intercepted Vallejo quarterback Sean Thomas for a 39-yard return. Napa’s Joe LeMasters rushed in from seven yards out to give the Indians a 7-0 edge.
Napa widened the advantage to 14-0 after Matt Shimel's 52-yard punt return set up Osawa's 4-yard scoring run. On Vallejo's next possession, Ryan Beeman recovered a fumble and returned it to the Napa 31-yard line. Seven plays later, Osawa had another 4-yard scoring scamper for a 21-0 lead with 9:55 left in the half.
The Indians kept the pressure on as Connor executed a fake punt that resulted in the team's final touchdown before halftime. Connors received the punt snap, faked a pass and then handed off to Cacique who went untouched for a 34-yard score.
Vallejo scored two second half touchdowns to make the final score appear more respectable but the Apaches were never in the game.
What it meant: The Apaches came back to win their next three games to go 5-2 but late season losses to Fairfield (21-13) and Davis (16-13) knocked Vallejo out of the playoff picture. The Apaches finished the season with a 29-0 win over Hogan.
In 2003, the MEL was realigned and Vallejo moved to the Solano County Athletic Conference. Though the Apaches would go 8-4 the following season and reach the second round of the CIF Sac Joaquin Section Div. II playoffs, that loss to the Indians coupled with the aforementioned loss to Vacaville the previous week was the first sign that Vallejo was developing cracks in its armor.
Conversely, this win proved to be more of a psychological hurdle for Napa but this was still considered a high profile game for the Indians, it led to big things.
Napa went 8-3 that season including a 9-7 win over Vintage. That win marked the Indians first win over the Crushers since 1996. Vintage having the edge over Napa in football seems like prehistoric times now as since since 2002, the Indians have won 12 of the last 13 head-to-head matchups. Napa would return to the playoffs for the first time since 1997, losing to Woodland 21-20.
Suffice it to say, since 2002, Napa and Vallejo’s programs have gone in opposite directions. The Indians have gone 106-34-2 since 2003 with six MEL titles, 12 playoff wins and a SJS D-I title. The worst season Napa had was 5-6 in 2009.
On the other hand, Vallejo has gone 29-80 since 2003 and has had just one, non-losing season (5-5 in 2003).
Napa and Vallejo also put its long-standing head-to-head rivalry on hold as the two teams did not play in 2014 and are not likely to play each other any time soon. Between 2003-2013, Napa had outscored the Apaches 490-149 and 187-26 from 2010-2013.
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